Commander of the Defence Force (The Bahamas)

Professional head of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force

Commander Defence Force of Bahamas

Emblem of the Bahamas Defence Force

Incumbent
Raymond King

since 21 May 2020

Royal Bahamas Defence Force
Formation| October 1976; 48 years ago (1976-10)
First holder| William Swinley
Deputy| Deputy Commander Defence Force
Website| Official website

The Commander of the Defence Force is the professional head of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force. He is responsible for the administration and the operational control of the Defence Force. The current commander is Raymond King, who was appointed on 21 May 2020, after serving as acting commander since 16 October 2019.[1][2]

## List of commanders

[edit]

*   Acting

No. | Portrait  | Name
(Birth–Death) | Term of office  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

Took office  | Left office  | Time in office
1  |  | Commodore
William Swinley
(?–2014) | October 1976  | 1981  | 4–5 years  | [3][4]
2  |  | Commodore
Christopher Belton
Royal Navy | 1981  | 1983  | 1–2 years  | [3]
3  |  | Commodore
Leon L. Smith | 1983  | 1997  | 13–14 years  | [3][5]
4  |  | Commodore
Davy Rolle | 1997  | 2006  | 8–9 years  | [3]
5  |  | Commodore
Clifford Scavella | 1 November 2006  | 21 January 2010  | 3 years, 81 days  | [3]
6  |  | Commodore
Roderick Bowe
(born 1961) | 21 January 2010  | 15 March 2015  | 5 years, 53 days  | [6]
–  |  | Commodore
Tellis Bethel | 15 March 2015  | 1 May 2017  | 2 years, 47 days  | [7][8]
[1]
7  | 1 May 2017  | 16 October 2019  | 2 years, 168 days
–  |  | Commodore
Raymond King
(born 1968) | 16 October 2019  | 21 May 2020  | 218 days  | [1][2]
8  | 21 May 2020  | Incumbent | 5 years, 65 days

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c Smith, Sloan (16 October 2019). "New acting RBDF commander". ewnews.com. Eyewitness News. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
2. ^ a b Thompson, Lindsay (21 May 2020). "Prime Minister Welcomes a New Commander of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force". bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
3. ^ a b c d e "Former Commodores". rbdf.gov.bs. Royal Bahamas Defence Force. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
4. ^ "The Bahamas' First Commodore William Swinley Passes". Bahamas Press. 1 July 2014. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
5. ^ "PM lauds Commodore Leon Smith for 'positive leadership' of RBDF". Bahamas Local. 23 September 2014. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
6. ^ "Commodore Roderick Bowe BSc. CMELI (Retired)". rbdf.gov.bs. Royal Bahamas Defence Force. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
7. ^ Bahamas, Jones (3 May 2017). "Commodore Bethel Heads Largest RBDF Promotion Exercise". jonesbahamas.com. The Bahama Journal. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
8. ^ "Commodore Tellis A. Bethel, MALIC". rbdf.gov.bs. Royal Bahamas Defence Force. Retrieved 10 May 2021.

* v
* t
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The Bahamas articles

History|

* Colonial heads
* Eleutheran Adventurers
* Raid of Nassau
* Raid on Charles Town
* Raid on Nassau
* Raid on Nassau (1720)
* Capture of the Bahamas (1782)
* Capture of the Bahamas (1783)
* Slavery
* American Civil War

Geography|

* Cities
* Nassau
* Freeport
* Creeks
* Islands
* New Providence
* Grand Bahama
* Wildlife
* birds
* mammals

Politics|

* Defence Force
* Commander
* Elections
* Foreign relations
* Governor-General
* Law
* Law enforcement
* Local government
* Monarchy
* Parliament
* Building
* Constituencies
* Political parties
* Prime Minister
* Leader of the Opposition
* Security and intelligence

Economy|

* Agriculture and fisheries
* Communications
* Dollar (currency)
* Stock exchange
* Squatting
* Taxation
* Transport

Society|

* Anthem
* Coat of arms
* Creole
* Culture
* Education
* Flag
* Films
* Holidays
* Languages
* LGBTQ rights
* Music
* National song
* People
* Demographics
* Ethnic groups
* Pledge
* Religion
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* Outline
* Index
* Bibliography

* Category

* v
* t
* e

Chiefs of defence by country

Chief of Defence

Africa|

* Algeria
* Angola
* Benin
* Botswana
* Burkina Faso
* Burundi
* Cameroon
* Cape Verde
* Central African Republic
* Chad
* Comoros
* DR Congo
* Republic of the Congo
* Djibouti
* Egypt
* Equatorial Guinea
* Eritrea
* Eswatini
* Ethiopia
* Gabon
* Gambia
* Ghana
* Guinea
* Guinea-Bissau
* Ivory Coast
* Kenya
* Lesotho
* Liberia
* Libya
* Madagascar
* Malawi
* Mali
* Mauritania
* Morocco
* Mozambique
* Namibia
* Niger
* Nigeria
* Rwanda
* São Tomé and Príncipe
* Senegal
* Seychelles
* Sierra Leone
* Somalia
* Somaliland
* South Africa
* South Sudan
* Sudan
* Tanzania
* Togo
* Tunisia
* Uganda
* Zambia
* Zimbabwe

former|

* Biafra
* Bophuthatswana
* Ciskei
* British Egypt
* Ethiopian Empire
* Rhodesia
* Transkei
* Venda
* Zaire

Americas|

* Antigua and Barbuda
* Argentina
* Bahamas
* Barbados
* Belize
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Canada
* Chile
* Colombia
* Cuba
* Dominican Republic
* Ecuador
* El Salvador
* Guatemala
* Guyana
* Haiti
* Honduras
* Jamaica
* Mexico
* Secretariat of National Defense
* Secretariat of the Navy
* Nicaragua
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Saint Kitts and Nevis
* Suriname
* Trinidad and Tobago
* United States
* Uruguay
* Venezuela

Asia|

* Afghanistan
* Bahrain
* Bangladesh
* Bhutan
* Brunei
* Cambodia
* China
* India
* Indonesia
* Iran
* AJA
* IRGC
* Iraq
* Israel
* Japan
* Jordan
* Kazakhstan
* North Korea
* South Korea
* Kuwait
* Kyrgyzstan
* Laos
* Lebanon
* Malaysia
* Maldives
* Mongolia
* Myanmar
* Nepal
* Oman
* Pakistan
* Philippines
* Qatar
* Saudi Arabia
* Singapore
* Sri Lanka
* Syria
* Taiwan
* Tajikistan
* Thailand
* Timor-Leste
* Turkmenistan
* United Arab Emirates
* Uzbekistan
* Vietnam
* Yemen

former|

* Democratic Kampuchea
* Imperial Japan
* Mengjiang
* Manchukuo
* South Vietnam

Europe|

* Abkhazia
* Albania
* Armenia
* Artsakh
* Austria
* Azerbaijan
* Belarus
* Belgium
* Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Bulgaria
* Croatia
* Cyprus
* Czech Republic
* Denmark
* Estonia
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Georgia
* Greece
* Hungary
* Iceland
* Ireland
* Italy
* Kosovo
* Latvia
* Lithuania
* Luxembourg
* Malta
* Moldova
* Monaco
* Montenegro
* Netherlands
* North Macedonia
* Northern Cyprus
* Norway
* Poland
* Portugal
* Romania
* Russia
* Serbia
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* Spain
* South Ossetia
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Transnistria
* Turkey
* Ukraine
* United Kingdom
* Vatican

former|

* Austria–Hungary
* Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Independent State of Croatia
* Czechoslovakia
* Prussia
* Imperial Germany
* Nazi Germany
* East Germany
* Ottoman Empire
* Russian Empire
* Republika Srpska
* Republic of Serb Krajina
* Soviet Union
* Yugoslavia

Oceania|

* Australia
* Fiji
* New Zealand
* Papua New Guinea
* Tonga
* Vanuatu

Supranational|

* European Union
* NATO

former|

* Warsaw Pact

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